Garcinia Cambogia and Diabetes

Garcinia cambogia is a small fruit that resembles a miniature pumpkin. It is indigenous to India and parts of Asia, and an extract from its fruit and rind is popular in many natural weight loss products. The extract is hydroxycitric acid (HCA), claimed to suppress appetite and enhance fat-burning. Animal research supports these claims, but subsequent human trials have been equivocal.

Garcinia cambogia is a yellowish pumpkin shaped tropical tree fruit native to the country of India. In 1965, researchers identified HCA as the principle acid found in the fruit and rind of garcinia cambogia. According to Indian folk tradition, garcinia cambogia has been prescribed for such ailments as rheumatism and bowel complaints. The rind and extracts are often used as ingredients in Indian curry dishes and as condiments. Both garcinia cambogia and extracted HCA are widely available in North America as a component in many commercial dietary supplements. The primary form of garcinia is in tablet or capsule form. Garcinia cambogia is often added to dietary supplements containing several different herbs, and is often found exclusively with chromium picolinate in capsule form. HCA inhibits lipogenesis, lowers the production of cholesterol and fatty acids, increases the production of glycogen in the liver, suppresses appetite, increases the body's production of heat by activating the process of thermogenesis. Potential dietary supplement for weight loss and appetite control.

Chromium, Garcinia Cambogia Help Relieve Metabolic Syndrome
Researchers have discovered that diabetic rats—a model for the human condition known as metabolic syndrome or syndrome X—experienced a significant reduction in their symptoms when treated with either niacin-bound chromium, maitake mushroom fraction and hydroxycitric acid from the anti-diabetic herb Garcinia cambogia..
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Effect of Garcinia cambogia extract on serum leptin and insulin in mice
In this study we examined the effects of 3.3% Garcinia cambogia extract on 10% sucrose loading in mice for 4 weeks. Treatment was found to have no effect on body weight, fat pad weight or serum glucose level. On the other hand, serum total cholesterol, triglycerides, NEFA were observed. Levels of serum insulin and leptin, as well as the leptin/WAT ratio, were lower in the treated mice than in the control. These findings suggested that G. cambogia extract efficiently improved glucose metabolism and displayed leptin-like activity. Read more here